In a recent hearing, the Supreme Court has granted relief to YouTuber and podcaster Ranveer Allahabadia, directing the release of his passport to enable him to travel abroad for work. This order comes after Allahabadia had to surrender his passport as a condition for interim protection from arrest in connection with FIRs filed against him over allegedly objectionable remarks made on a YouTube show called "India's Got Latent."

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh passed the order, noting that the investigations against Allahabadia in Assam and Maharashtra have been completed. The court has instructed Allahabadia, also known as BeerBiceps, to apply to the Maharashtra Cyber Crime Bureau for the release of his passport. The Bureau is authorized to impose reasonable terms and conditions for the passport's release.

The case against Allahabadia stems from comments made during an episode of "India's Got Latent" hosted by comedian Samay Raina. The remarks led to multiple FIRs being filed, alleging obscenity and other offenses. The Supreme Court had previously granted Allahabadia interim protection from arrest but ordered him to deposit his passport with the investigating officer in Thane.

Allahabadia then approached the court again, seeking the release of his passport, explaining that he needs to travel abroad for his shows, which are his primary source of income. This plea was considered after the Assam and Maharashtra governments confirmed the completion of their investigations against him.

During the proceedings, Allahabadia's lawyer, Senior Advocate Abhinav Chandrachud, requested the court to consolidate the FIRs against his client into one place for the next hearing. However, Justice Surya Kant raised concerns about the Guwahati FIR containing specific allegations not present in the Mumbai FIR, questioning why a perceived victim in Assam should be required to come to Maharashtra. The court stated it would address this issue at the next hearing, referencing a previous judgment in the Amish Devgan case, where FIRs pertaining to the same episode were consolidated.

In a related matter, the court is also considering a separate writ petition filed by the Cure SMA Foundation against certain remarks made by comedian Samay Raina regarding persons with disabilities. The bench allowed the organization to serve notice of its writ petition to the private respondents through the Mumbai Commissioner of Police, after the organization's representative stated that their addresses could not be traced.

The Supreme Court had initially restrained Allahabadia from airing any program of his podcast which had a direct or indirect bearing on the merits of the sub-judice cases he was involved in. However, this restriction was later lifted after Allahabadia assured the court that his shows would maintain standards of decency and morality suitable for viewers of all age groups, permitting the resumption of "The Ranveer Show".